


The Best Kind of Mess

by VanillaHorizon



Category: Jane and the Dragon
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Future Fic, Gen, Light Angst, Most characters tagged are only mentioned, Personal Growth, Pining, Rare Pairings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-25
Updated: 2020-05-25
Packaged: 2021-03-02 21:21:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 975
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24363475
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VanillaHorizon/pseuds/VanillaHorizon
Summary: Jane has been a knight for many years and she finds that the life of a lady knight seems to be a lonely one. Gunther comforts her when he finds her crying outside the castle walls then gives her a handkerchief to dry her tears, little does she know that the little piece of cloth actually has quite some meaning behind it.
Relationships: Jane Turnkey/Gunther Breech, janther
Comments: 6
Kudos: 15





	The Best Kind of Mess

**Author's Note:**

> Real talk? I have no idea if it's supposed to be Sir Ivon or Sir Ivan because the fandom pages for Jane and The Dragon are nowhere near completed, like it's missing so many things and idk if I should trust them or not.

Jane couldn't remember how long she had been a knight anymore, she just knew it had been quite a while.

Her mother was long since gone, as was the king himself and Sir Theodore, many of the people she once knew now showed obvious age, Sir Ivon had long since retired and hung up his weapons for good, even the queen was quite gracefully showing her age, so much so that there had been talk of allowing her daughter to ascend to the throne in the coming months.

The prince had long since fallen in love with a merchant girl and asked to not be forced to rule, simply so he could marry the woman he fell in love with. 

Lavinia was by all means already being courted by a young nobleman from a neighboring kingdom, she had been quick to tell Jane all about how much she adored him once she had finished her nightly rounds.

The warmth that she spoke with was something Jane had always wanted someone to speak of her with, but there had been no one brave enough to even attempt to court her in her last however many years of being a knight.

Though Jane wore a smile as the princess swooned over the nobleman to her, she found that her heart was heavy in her chest as she turned to leave.

Her feet did not take her to her bed as she had planned after her visit to the bathhouse, but to the outer walkway leading out of the safety of the castle walls.

She did not make it far before she had been forced to let out a choked sob.

Somehow she had found her way to a boulder beside the road where she sat and cried for a love she would very likely never have in her life.

She had hardly even noticed the heavy arm wrapped around her shoulder once her tears subsided, nor did she initially notice the comforting nothings being whispered in her ear.

"Now are you with me?" A familiar voice whispered softly.

"Gunther?"

"That's what everyone usually calls me," he joked.

She sniffled and hurried to wipe the tears from her eyes.

"You must think I'm a mess," she laughed.

He pulled an old red handkerchief out of the pouch to his side and held it out to her, shifting his hand to rest on her back instead of on her shoulder.

"I've always thought you were the best kind of mess."

She snorted unceremoniously at his reply but said nothing further until he withdrew his hand from between her shoulder blades.

"Aren't you supposed to be patrolling?" She asked, finally looking up at him.

"Who says I haven't already finished my patrol for the hour?" He questioned.

She raised an eyebrow at him as if already knowing that he hasn't patrolled yet.

"Okay, you got me, but I couldn't quite leave you out here to cry by yourself in the cold, now could I?" He motioned to the cloak she now had wrapped around her shoulders.

She moved to remove it and give it back but Gunther stopped her with a shake of his head.

"Your hair's still wet, you need it more than I do right now."

It was a true wonder how someone could change quite as much as he had changed.

Of course, everyone knew the mystery girl he once fell for had tossed him aside for someone with a higher social standing and his father had passed away not long after he became a knight, but even still, he was far from the same person that he once was when they were both young.

Where once there was an antisocial and sometimes rather rude boy was now a kind and caring knight.

"If you want I could walk you back, it's not that far out of my way," Gunther's voice pulled her from her thoughts.

"No, you've already done enough for me tonight, thank you."

She started to walk back but stopped a few steps short of the archway "Be careful," they both had told each other simultaneously.

A blush dusted her cheeks and should she have looked back then she would've seen Gunther's reddened features as well as a small smile.

•••

Gunther knew it wasn't any of his business, but he couldn't help but wonder what could make Jane Turnkey, one of the best knights he's ever met, start sobbing uncontrollably.

He wanted to ask, he really did, but he couldn't bring himself to ask for fear of making her upset again.

Without a second thought, he handed her his handkerchief, the very one that he had been secretly wanting to give her for too many years to count.

"Lilac means to wait at your window for a letter, while purple is for like and light green is cautious, pink corners mean you can not live without them and a green corner is for loyalty to them and only them, a blue one is sorrow for you know they're not grateful, then the one your father snuck to me was red, it meant he loved me with all his heart, though I doubt he truly knew the meaning behind it." He recalled his mother telling him of such things when he was much much younger before giving him that very handkerchief.

Jane probably did not know the meaning behind the color, and truthfully he didn't care, he just wanted her to have it.

He knew that the corners were long since faded to pink, and he found that he didn't quite mind that implication.

Though Gunther would deny it, he finished his rounds that night with a smile on his face and a bounce in his step, even if he was shivering by the end of the night without his cloak to keep him warm.

**Author's Note:**

> I couldn't help myself when I stumbled upon an old writing reference that noted handkerchief meanings back during- a long time ago when lovers would pass hankies. So I was like "Hmm.. Janther? Maybe? Yup." Hence the grown-up knights and that small bit of pining.


End file.
